Desserts to flip for / Pastry chefs are playing with sweet concoctions that spotlight fresh fruit

Published 4:00 am, Wednesday, July 19, 2006

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Pastry chefs are designing desserts that flip the standard proportions, using more fruit and less pastry, to create lower fat dishes. Photo of Warm Cherry Compote with Petite Bread Pudding. Food styled by Amanda Gold.
Craig Lee / The Chronicle MANDATORY CREDIT FOR PHOTOG AND SF CHRONICLE/ -MAGS OUT less

PASTRY19_336_cl.JPG
Pastry chefs are designing desserts that flip the standard proportions, using more fruit and less pastry, to create lower fat dishes. Photo of Warm Cherry Compote with Petite Bread Pudding. ... more

Photo: Craig Lee

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Pastry chefs are designing desserts that flip the standard proportions, using more fruit and less pastry, to create lower fat dishes. Photo of Ice Cream-Stuffed Peaches.
Food styled by Amanda Gold.
Craig Lee / The Chronicle MANDATORY CREDIT FOR PHOTOG AND SF CHRONICLE/ -MAGS OUT less

PASTRY19_275_cl.JPG
Pastry chefs are designing desserts that flip the standard proportions, using more fruit and less pastry, to create lower fat dishes. Photo of Ice Cream-Stuffed Peaches.
Food styled by ... more

Photo: Craig Lee

Image 3 of 3

PASTRY19_204_cl.JPG
Pastry chefs are designing desserts that flip the standard proportions, using more fruit and less pastry, to create lower fat dishes. Photo of Cheesecake Panna Cotta with a flight of fresh fruits. Food styled by Amanda Gold.
Craig Lee / The Chronicle MANDATORY CREDIT FOR PHOTOG AND SF CHRONICLE/ -MAGS OUT less

PASTRY19_204_cl.JPG
Pastry chefs are designing desserts that flip the standard proportions, using more fruit and less pastry, to create lower fat dishes. Photo of Cheesecake Panna Cotta with a flight of fresh ... more

Photo: Craig Lee

Desserts to flip for / Pastry chefs are playing with sweet concoctions that spotlight fresh fruit

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When the dessert menu arrives in most restaurants, diners who want a little something sweet are often out of luck.

Most of the choices will be over-the-top indulgent: molten chocolate cake with whipped cream; a hefty slab of peach crisp with a hunk of ice cream; a zillion-calorie creme brulee with a berry garnish. Then there's the deprivation dessert -- the token grapefruit sorbet -- for those who actually intend to stick to their diets. But where is the middle ground?

"We tend to either give people regular or unleaded and nothing in between," says Greg Drescher, senior director of strategic initiatives at the Culinary Institute of America at Greystone in St. Helena.

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"I think people are often in the mood, at the end of a meal, for something a little bit decadent. They want one or two bites of something fabulous and extravagant, but would love to have the rest of the dish be more fruit-based."

To encourage pastry chefs to revisit their offerings, Drescher and his colleagues at the CIA have been promoting a novel idea in the dessert department, a concept they call the pastry flip. (Drescher attributes the phrase to Michael Batterberry, founder of Food Arts magazine, a restaurant trade publication.) What if you flipped the usual proportions of dessert so that the indulgent part -- the cheesecake, the brownie, the ice cream -- was the garnish and the fruit was the main event?

A flipped dessert would deliver three or four bites of unrestrained lusciousness -- enough to satisfy many people -- without leaving diners feeling guilty and overfed. What's more, the pastry-flip concept doesn't ask chefs to compromise their creations by trying to make reduced-fat or low-calorie versions, which are almost never satisfying.

"There's something to it," says Annie Clemmons, pastry chef at Cyrus in Healdsburg. "One bite sometimes is all you need of something unctuous and gooey and yummy, and many people are happy with that."

Clemmons says she served only bonbons and petits fours at a recent restaurant event and guests were delighted. "That's all people wanted," says Clemmons. "Just one bite."

Stephen Durfee, a former pastry chef at the French Laundry and now a pastry instructor at the CIA Greystone, drew the assignment of illustrating pastry-flip principles to an audience of top pastry chefs at a recent industry conference on the St. Helena campus. His demonstration dish -- an inside-out strudel with shaved apples forming the strudel layers and a "cigar" of crisp phyllo rolled with streusel crumbs in the center -- would score a thumbs-up from any dessert fan.

"In a way, I could easily buy into this," says Durfee. At the French Laundry, given the multicourse menus, "people never had room for dessert by the time they got to me. So we would focus on fruit and garnish with ice creams or custards in flavors that would complement the fruit."

Local pastry chefs acknowledge that "flipping" desserts would be easier in the Bay Area than just about anywhere else because of the variety and quality of the region's fresh fruit.

"It's a slam dunk," says Emily Luchetti, pastry chef at Farallon, "especially in California, and especially in summer when there's so much fruit. But not everybody can live in the land of Meyer lemons."

Even in the Eden of Northern California, however, fruit-dominated desserts can challenge a pastry department. Many restaurant pastry kitchens are so thinly staffed these days, says Luchetti, that unskilled workers often plate the desserts made hours earlier by a pastry chef. In these budget-constrained kitchens, chocolate or custard desserts that can be made during the day and stored in the refrigerator or freezer make sense. Fruit desserts, which often require peeling, slicing and saucing at the last minute, don't.

Bottom-line concerns might also conspire against the pastry flip, chefs say. Would diners pay as much for a poached pear with a sliver of cheesecake as they would for cheesecake with a sliver of pear?

"If it's artfully presented, and the healthy component is treated with just as much technique as the indulgent part, I think it could work," says Nicole Plue, pastry chef at Julia's Kitchen in Napa.

However, even in the Bay Area, fruit quality can frustrate a pastry chef attempting to put fruit front and center. "You have to have preparations where the fruit isn't the star, because if the peaches come in and they suck, you're sunk," says Plue.

"I don't know if I'm in total agreement with the concept," admits Jennifer Kenny, pastry chef at Belden Taverna in San Francisco. "When people eat out, are they really looking for that? If you just had a 14-ounce rib-eye steak, are you really going to want a tiny piece of cake with a lot of strawberries?"

Kenny says her lighter, fruitier, healthier desserts don't move. A sangria gelee with fresh fruit remains on the menu as an offering to the health conscious, but few diners order it. "In general," says Kenny, "people go for the big chocolate cake."

A pastry-flip advocate might argue that the gelee languishes because it's too abstemious. Even flipped desserts, in theory, have an indulgent element. It's just not the focus.

Mary Jo Thoresen, the pastry chef and part-owner of JoJo restaurant in Oakland, was intrigued enough with the pastry-flip idea to give it a trial run recently. Her warm cherry-apricot compote with a petite bread pudding dusted with powdered sugar was the top seller the night she debuted it, outdrawing even her chocolate souffle cake. She has kept the flipped dessert on the menu and reports that it's still the best-seller.

"That little thing with its powdered sugar top, it has real appeal," says Thoresen. "The first one goes out, and it kind of starts rolling."

Perhaps America's weight problem would lessen if diners had more options for satisfying desserts that stopped well short of excess. "Why can't you feel great after eating a dessert?" asks Luchetti, who professes distaste for dessert standards like the ultra-rich mousse artfully topped with six berries. "Give me a big old pile of berries with a little of that mousse on top, and that dessert would taste a lot better."

From Stephen Durfee, pastry instructor at the Culinary Institute of America at Greystone. Note that you will need to rig up a small double boiler, such as a small bowl set over a small saucepan. The recipe makes more confit than you need, but it keeps well.

INGREDIENTS:

The Green Tomato Confit:

3/4 pound green (unripe) tomatoes

1 cup packed light brown sugar

1-inch piece of ginger, peeled and smashed

Grated zest and juice of 1/2 orange

Grated zest and juice of 1/2 lemon

Grated zest and juice of 1/2 lime

1/4 cup golden raisins

1/4 cup finely diced dried apricots

1 tablespoon sherry vinegar

The Sabayon:

2 egg yolks

3 1/2 tablespoons sugar

2 tablespoons water

1 tablespoon honey

3/4 cup heavy whipping cream, whipped

8 ripe nectarines

INSTRUCTIONS:

To make the confit: Peel the tomatoes and cut into small dice. In a saucepan, combine tomatoes, brown sugar, ginger, citrus zests and juices, raisins, apricots and vinegar. Cover surface with a round of parchment paper, bring just to a simmer over moderately low heat, then reduce heat to maintain a bare simmer. Cook until tomato is tender and translucent, about 1 hour, and liquid has reduced to just a tablespoon or two. If necessary, remove parchment paper to evaporate the liquid. When done, remove ginger. Let cool.

To make the sabayon: In a small bowl that fits tightly over a small saucepan, combine the egg yolks, sugar and water. Whisk to blend, then set the bowl over a saucepan of simmering water. The bowl should not touch the water. Whisk constantly until the mixture thickens and grows in volume, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and whisk until cool. Whisk in the honey, then fold in the whipped cream.

To assemble the salad, slice the nectarines and divide among 8 compote dishes or balloon wineglasses. Top each portion with a spoonful of tomato confit and a dollop of sabayon. Serve immediately.

Adapted from "Bittersweet: Recipes and Tales from a Life in Chocolate," by Alice Medrich (Artisan, 2003). The souffle mixture can be prepared in the ramekins up to two days ahead, ready to slip into a preheated oven while you clear the table.

INGREDIENTS:

Butter and sugar to coat the ramekins

4 ounces bittersweet 70% chocolate, chopped into small pieces

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

3 tablespoons milk

1 large egg, separated, at room temperature

1 large egg white, at room temperature

Scant 1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar

3 tablespoons sugar

1 pound ripe strawberries

1/4 cup single-malt Scotch, or to taste

1 tablespoon sugar, or to taste

Powdered sugar

INSTRUCTIONS:

If you are baking the souffles right away, position a rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat to 375º. Butter and sugar the bottom and sides of six 3- to 4-ounce ramekins.

Place chocolate, butter and milk in a medium heatproof bowl set in a wide skillet of almost simmering water. Stir until the chocolate is melted and the mixture is smooth and very warm. Remove the bowl from the water bath and whisk in the egg yolk. (Don't worry if the mixture stiffens slightly or is less than perfectly smooth at this point.)

In a clean, dry mixing bowl, beat the two egg whites and cream of tartar with an electric mixer until soft peaks form when the whisks are lifted. Gradually sprinkle in sugar and continue to beat at high speed until egg whites are stiff but not dry. Fold 1/4 of the egg white into the chocolate mixture to lighten it, then fold in the remaining egg white.

Divide the mixture evenly among the prepared ramekins. (Souffles may be prepared to this point, covered, and refrigerated up to two days and then baked directly from the refrigerator.)

Just before baking the souffles, slice the strawberries into a bowl and toss with the Scotch. Sprinkle with sugar to taste. Let macerate for a few minutes, then taste and adjust the sugar and Scotch. Transfer berries to a serving bowl to pass separately or divide among individual dishes to serve beside the souffles.

Place the souffles on a cookie sheet. Bake until they rise and crack on top and a toothpick plunged into the center emerges covered in moist batter beginning to form gooey crumbs, 9 to 12 minutes. Without delay, transfer each ramekin to a serving plate. Sieve a little powdered sugar over the tops and serve immediately with the strawberries. Guests may spoon berries over their souffles.

From Emily Luchetti, pastry chef at Farallon restaurant in San Francisco.

INGREDIENTS:

The Ice Cream:

1 1/4 pints fresh raspberries

4 large egg yolks

1/2 cup sugar

1/8 teaspoon salt

1 1/4 cups milk

1 1/4 cups heavy cream

The Peaches:

8 ripe peaches

3/4 cup Moscato d'Asti

1 tablespoon sugar

1/2 pint fresh raspberries

INSTRUCTIONS:

For the ice cream: Puree the 1 1/2 pints raspberries in a food processor or through a food mill. Strain the puree through a sieve to eliminate any seeds. You should have about 1 cup of puree.

In a large bowl, whisk together the egg yolks, 1/4 cup of the sugar and salt.

Warm the milk, cream and remaining 1/4 cup sugar in a saucepan over moderately high heat, stirring frequently, until bubbling around the edges. Slowly whisk the hot liquid into the egg mixture. Return to the pan and cook over low heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, until the custard visibly thickens and coats the back of the spoon, about 5 minutes, or until it reaches 175º on an instant-read thermometer. Strain through a medium-mesh sieve. Cool over an ice bath, stir in the raspberry puree and refrigerate until cold.

Freeze in an ice cream machine according to the manufacturer's instructions.

For the peaches: Peel the peaches, cut them in half, and discard the pits. Place the peach halves in a bowl with the Moscato d'Asti. Spoon the liquid over them. Let sit for 10 minutes, turn them over, and let sit for another 10 minutes.

Drain the peach soaking liquid into a small saucepan and add sugar. Cover the peaches with plastic wrap to prevent browning. Simmer the peach liquid over moderate heat until reduced to about 1/3 cup. Let cool to room temperature.

To serve: Slice a thin layer off the top of the peach halves so they will sit flat on the plate. Place a cut peach half on each plate. Place a small scoop of raspberry ice cream in the middle of the peach where the pit was. Place the second half on top. Drizzle the Moscato d'Asti syrup around the peach and garnish with raspberries. Serve immediately.

From Mary Jo Thoresen, pastry chef and co-owner of JoJo restaurant in Oakland.

INGREDIENTS:

The Cherry-Apricot Compote:

8 apricots, halved

Unsalted butter

Granulated sugar

2 1/2 pounds cherries, pitted and halved

3/4 teaspoon cornstarch

Kirsch, optional

The Bread Pudding:

About 3 ounces of pain de mie or other firm sandwich bread, crusts removed

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

1 cup milk

1/2 cup cream

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1/2-inch piece vanilla bean

1 extra-large egg

1 extra-large egg yolk

Powdered sugar

INSTRUCTIONS:

For the compote: Preheat oven to 375º. Put the apricot halves, cut-side up, in a small baking dish. Dot with butter and sprinkle with sugar. Bake until softened and juicy, about 20 minutes.

Put the cherries and 1/4 cup sugar in a skillet, cover and cook over moderate heat until the cherries are softened but still hold their shape and have yielded a lot of juice. Be careful not to overcook.

Transfer the cherries to a bowl and drain off 2/3 cup of juice. Put the juice in a small saucepan. In a small cup, make a slurry of 1 1/2 teaspoons cold water and the cornstarch. Bring the cherry juice to a boil, add the cornstarch mixture and whisk until the juice has thickened. Pour it back into the bowl with the cherries. Add a few drops of kirsch if desired. Set aside while you bake bread puddings; the compote can be served warm, not hot.

For the bread puddings: Lower the oven temperature to 350º. Cut the bread into 1/2-inch cubes. Melt the butter in a small saucepan, add the bread and toss to coat evenly with butter. Divide the bread among eight 3-ounce ovenproof ramekins, filling them about three-quarters full.

Combine the milk, cream and sugar in a small saucepan. Halve the vanilla bean lengthwise and scrape the seeds into the milk mixture, then add the pod too. Bring just to a simmer.

In a bowl, whisk the egg and egg yolk. Gradually add the hot milk mixture to the eggs, whisking constantly. Strain the custard through a fine sieve.

Pour the custard over the bread, dividing it evenly. Let stand for a few minutes so the custard soaks into the bread; add more custard if needed. You may not need all of it.

Place the ramekins in a high-sided baking dish and add boiling water to come two-thirds up the sides of the ramekins. Transfer to the oven and bake uncovered until the puddings puff and a knife inserted in the center comes out clean, about 25 minutes. Remove the ramekins from the water bath.

To serve, divide the warm cherries and apricots among 8 dessert bowls. Using a small, sharp knife, loosen the edges of the bread puddings and gently coax them out. Place them right side up on top of the fruit. Dust the top of each bread pudding with powdered sugar and serve immediately.

From Nicole Plue, pastry chef at Julia's Kitchen in Napa. Plue made her miniature panna cotta in the small plastic cups that takeout food shops often use for salad dressing. If you don't want to purchase porcelain ramekins, a friendly deli might supply the 3-ounce plastic cups.

INGREDIENTS:

The Panna Cotta:

4 ounces natural cream cheese, at room temperature

3/4 cup creme fraiche

1/3 cup granulated sugar

1 teaspoon powdered unflavored gelatin

1 tablespoon water

3/4 cup half-and-half

1/2 vanilla bean

1 tablespoon lemon juice

The Streusel:

1/4 cup graham cracker crumbs

2 teaspoons powdered sugar

1 tablespoon butter, melted

The Pineapple Blueberry Ginger Salad:

1 1/2 cups fresh pineapple, in 1/4-inch dice

1/2 cup fresh blueberries

1 tablespoon finely diced crystallized ginger

1/4 teaspoon grated lime zest

2-3 tablespoons granulated sugar

The Strawberry & Black Pepper Salad:

2 cups fresh strawberries, hulled and quartered

1/4 teaspoon freshly grated orange zest

Granulated sugar and black pepper to taste

The Cherry & Basil Salad:

2 cups fresh cherries, pitted and halved

Chopped fresh basil, granulated sugar and balsamic vinegar to taste

INSTRUCTIONS:

For the panna cotta: In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix cream cheese on medium speed until smooth. Add creme fraiche and sugar and mix until combined. Remove bowl from mixer and set aside.

In a small bowl, sprinkle gelatin over water. Let sit 1 minute.

Put the half-and-half in a small saucepan. Split the vanilla bean lengthwise and scrape the seeds into the half-and-half, then add the pod too. Bring just to a boil over moderate heat. Remove from heat, add gelatin and stir to dissolve. Remove the vanilla bean pod.

Carefully add the hot half-and-half mixture to the cream cheese and mix until combined. Strain mixture through a fine-mesh strainer and add lemon juice.

Spray eight 3-ounce plastic cups or ramekins with pan spray. Divide the panna cotta mixture among the cups and refrigerate until set, at least 4 hours.

For the streusel: Preheat oven to 325º. Combine all ingredients in a small bowl. Spread out on baking sheet and bake until slightly darkened and crisp, about 15 minutes. Cool.

For the pineapple-blueberry salad: In a bowl, combine pineapple, blueberries, ginger and zest. Add sugar to taste. Stir well and refrigerate at least 30 minutes before serving.

For the strawberry & black pepper salad: In a bowl, combine strawberries and zest. Add sugar and pepper to taste. Stir well and refrigerate at least 30 minutes.

For the cherry & basil salad: In a bowl, combine cherries with chopped basil, sugar and vinegar to taste. Stir well and refrigerate at least 30 minutes.

To serve, unmold each panna cotta onto a dessert plate. Sprinkle with streusel and surround with some of each fruit salad.

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